Fluid-current motor



H. G. LLOYD AND 0. A. SPON.

FLUID CURRENT MOTOR.

APPLICATION EILED OCT. 26 I920.

Patented Apr. 18, 1 922.

'2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

I M m whuu l l z w. I

H.'G.'LLOYD AND C..A. SPON.

FLUID CURRENT MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED bcf. 26, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

l l luml 1 1 ll 2% 32 was ,mmi' g I Inn 631507 Patented Apr. 18, 1922.

UNITEDL PATENt- HENRY GARDNER .LLoYD, 5F SUBBITON, Ann enemas atmmsmm 01* 03 7 ,116,-

{F011, ENGLAND. a a v FLuID-GURRENT oron." 9

' A pIication filed October as, 1e2o.]='ser1a1 No. 419,603.

To all whom it magy aoncem:

Be it known that we, HENRY Grumman e Lnovmsubec't of theKing ofEn'gland, re-

, England, have invented certain new and use- U siding at of England, residing at Orpingtom-Kent,

ful' Improvements in Fluid-Gurrentl'lotors, of which the following is a specification.-

This invention is for irnprovementsi in .or relating to fluid-currentmotors and has :for

"one ojf its objectsfto provide 'aflsimplev and eflicient means wherebya stream or current of water or other fluid may be employed to drive a'motor. i V

. The primary feature of thepre'sent invention consists inthe combination with means (fqr instance Projection intoa current;

from a body either fixed or moving relaa ti'velyto thatcurrent,) for producing avor:

tex,fi'n a current 'of fluid,-of a shaftsituated '1' insaidvortex, and coincidentwithi-or approximately parallel to the axis thereof and vanes on the shaft to be 'propelled by'th'e rotating vortex. "Conveniently, the vortexor producing means maytake the form of an abutment arranged to; divide the current of fluid and thus produceta' vortex on each.

" side ofits centre line,and this abutment may be pivotedand carry on-its rearward facea" stabilizing vane, wholly or partly" immersed "in thecurrent' offluid, to maintain the abuts ment in operative position."- Conveniently?! also the shape of the-abutment can becon-I '35" l According to :another-rfeature of the in- 'ventionthe vanes on the shaft (and :preferably also any arms employed to couple Ythe vanes tothe shaft) are' formed with jpocketed "or 'conc'aved" rearward {faces to receive the efi'ortof'therotating-vortex, the;

curve of these'facesbeing such that the said j, "faces shallofier as muchjresistance'fas-is de:-- F ls'ired to the movement of thefluidpastthese'f v i '7 V L For a more completeunderstandingofthei trolled to vary its efiect.

ivanes and farms. i

wherein 1i Flgure tion, which is illustrated, mainly ;,diagrammatically, in the accompanyingv drawings,

urbiton, Surrey, England, and CHARLES ALFRED Sron, subject or" the King 2 g 1 is an elevation in seetionion the line 1 -1 of Figure2;' a Y 1 Figure 2 is a pla-n'in section onthe gline '22-of Figure 1; and I. i. p

Figuref3 is a plan corresponding to Figure' 2, and illustrative of a modification,

.par ts in 'bothfigure's of the 'idrawingsl 5' 1 raeemeaa rijrs, 1 922.

Like reference numerals indicate ,lik e 6O *Thefstream or current-employed-qmay be of water or anyiother'suitable ,fluid, and the 1 v motormaybe disposed therein horizontally vertically orat any anglesuited; to the situ e ation of the axis-of thee'vortex that is to be utilized; In the present exampldthe axisof the motor is intended tube disposed verti- 1 y cally withinjthe v'ortex, that tis to'say, the

axis is to beparallel with-or coincident with theaxisofthe vortex.

rotation onit base; '11 ;ro lier bearings ,12 between the two partsflCarriedin the 4 f: standard jorlsupport lO'hasn ountedior;

ball bearings 13"on; the basepla tef'll is a shaftfl ij The base l'lxhas s'e cu redito itthe v 5 bottom plate 15' of a hollow'abutment 160i 1 triangular form, having,curvedgsides as shown more clearly injplan in Figure2. The i abutment-l6- is closed tau 1e top'by plate v r l7, and the upper end of the shaft is journal-led in bearing infthe plate 163 by means ter-b'alanceweight 20. The vane" 19 is to be wholly or? partly immersed in the operating fluid ionthe purpose. ofumaintaining the abutmentfinoperative position. Thebottoni v V or the balLbeaifinglSe *It will be seem theretateon thesupports illindependentlyfof the e wThe top platetlf is provided with rear- V wardly extending tail or vane l9, and a coun- F plate. l51 carries; counter-balance weights 21.

vergent radially extending arms and correspondingarms- 22; are secured to the. top plate 17. The two-latter arms are cross-connected extremities. V l v J 7 Secured at or near lts extremities between each corresponding pair of the upperland lower radial arms is a Spind1g2flM f by a plat'e'23 secured to them neartheir outer '7 wheel rotor. Secured to the bottom disc 26 of each rotor is a pulley 28, and each pulley 28 is connected by a band 29 to a pulley 3i mounted on the shaft 14.

lVhen the motor described in the foregoing is placed in a moving fluid stream, the directing vane 19 maintains the abutment so that its longer side faces the stream which will constantly travel in the relative direction of the arrow 31 in Figure l. The abutment splits the stream of fluid and consequently varies the direction and velocity of the latter, producing one or more vortices, in the current. In the present example, it is .found that the abutment illustrated will produce two vortices, the centres of which are substantially co-incident with or in the region of' the axes of the spindles 24.. Each of the rotors is thus disposed in a vortex, and the curved rear face of the abutment 16 assists in the production of the vortices in desired relation to the rotors.

The vanes 27 are curved or pocketed to present concave rearward faces to the flow of the vortices produced, and the rotors will rotate in the direction of the arrows '32 in Figure 2. By suitably connecting the belts 29, as shown in the latter figure, to the pulley 30, the turning effort of both rotors will be transmitted in the same sense to the shaft 14 which may be connected with any device that it is desired to drive, for example, an electrical generator.

It is obvious that the invention admits of many modifications; for example, instead of employing only one abutment with either one or two rotors, there -may be a series of such abutments placed across the stream or current, each producing, say, one or two operative vortices, and the rotor spindles in all .these vortices may be coupled to a single main shaft as desired.

Moreover, the forward or other face of the abutment described, or each of such abutments, if more than one is employed, may be flexible so that their shape may be varied in order to adjust their vortex-producing effect.

Figure 3 diagrammatically illustrates such a construction. In this case the abutment 16 is in the form of a flexible metallic strip to the inner ends of which are pivoted inwardly extending arms 33 terminating in r stream, particularly'in cases where the clirection of flow of the current does 11 .1 m?

terially vary from time to time. In cases, however, where the direction of flow of the current does vary, it will be appreciated that the provision of vane such as 19is' desirable.

Means may be provided for varying the angle of the vortex-propelled vanes relatively to their shaft in order to control the speed of rotation, ora portion of these vanes may be shielded from the propellent effort of the vortex, say by a hood.

What we claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1- 1. The combination of means for producing a vortex in the current of fluid, a shaft adapted to be situated in said vortex and substantially parallel to the axis thereof, and vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the rotating vortex, substantially as described. V

2. The combination of means for produc-v ing a vortex in a currentof fluid, a shaft adapted to be situated in said vortex and substantially thereof, and vanes on the shaftto be propelled by the rotating vortex, substantially as described. l 1 i 3. The combination with an abutment for dividing a current'of'fluid and thus to produce a vortex, a shaft'to be situated: in a vortex thus produced .and substantially parallel tothe axis of thevortex, and vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the'rotating vortex, substantially as describedi 4. The combination of an abutment for dividing a current of fluid and thus to produce a vortex on each side of the centre line of the abutment, shafts to be situated one to be propelled by therotating vortices,-sub'- stantially as described. 1

5. The c.ombination' with apivoted abutment for dividinga current of fluid to' produce a vortex,-a stabilizing vane on:the rearward face of the abutment of which vane at least apart is to be immersed in the current of fluid-to maintain the abutment in operative position, a shaft situated in-the, vortex thus produced and approximately parallel to the axis of the vortex, and vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the rotating" vortex, substantially as described. 7

6. The combination of means forproducing a' vortex in a'currentof fluid,'a shaft to be situated in said vortex and approximately parallel to the axis thereof, and vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the rotating vortex, the vanes being formed with pocketed rearward faces-to receive the effort of the rotating "vortex, i substantially as described."

7. The combination with a hollow chamber which constitutes means fordividing a current of fluid 0 Produce fa vortex, a main coincident with the axisshaft carried by the said hollow chamberto couple together the rotor and main shafts,

substantially as described.

8. The combination with an abutment for dividing a current of fluid and thus to produce a vortex therein, a shaft to be situated in said vortex and substantially parallel to the axis thereof, vanes on'the shafttorbe propelled by the rotating vortex, and means whereby the shape of the abutment can be controlled to vary its vortex-producing effect, substantially as described;

9 In means for producing a vortex in a current of fluid, a shaft having its axis coin.- cident with the axis 01 said vortex, and vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the rotating vortex, substantially as described.

10. The" combination with an abutment for dividing a currentof fluid and thus pro-.

ducing a vortex therein, or" a shaft having its axis coincident with the axis of said vortex, vanes on the shaft to be propelled by the rotating vortex, and means whereby the shape of the abutment can be controlled to varyits vortex producing effect, substantially as described.

In testimony'whereof we have signed our namesto this specification. V

HENRY GARDINER LLOYD. CHARLES ALFRED sPoN. 

